Toledo Waterfront Park Area Closed for Dredging Operations

The Park area on the Depot Slough Waterfront will be closed temporarily for the duration of the dredging operation that is currently in progress. The area will have heavy equipment traffic and is not safe for pedestrian or recreational use until completion of the project in about two weeks.

The contractor is operating a crane with a clamshell bucket along the bank of the Slough, then loading the dredged material into dump trucks, and driving around the Park to unload the material in the recently constructed bermed containment area.

The dredging completes what was started last year, and will provide enough water depth for vessels that will be using the new Transient Dock. The new dock will be installed directly following the dredging, with the pile driving and setting of the gangway being performed by the same contractor, Billeter Marine of Coos Bay, OR.

Just Moved

It has been a busy week here at the Port of Toledo. We have just moved into our beautiful new office at 496 NE Hwy 20, and were proud to show off the amazing rennovation of the building we are sharing with Firehouse Clayworks to the City at a Joint meeting last week.

The Port's new address is:
PO Box 428
496 NE Hwy 20, Unit 1
Toledo OR 97391

Our old office has been leased to American Grounding Systems. If you are looking for the Port and stop by down there, say Hi to Ronnie, Ted and the gang. They fabricate grounding straps to ship worldwide for many different industries. You can check out their website at http://ags.bz. They will be able to direct you to our new office, up the hill, just past JC Market, in the old firestation. We are in the unit on the East side of the building, with the main entrance on the side of the building.

2011 Wooden Boat Show Poster

The 7th annual Port of Toledo Wooden Boat Show is coming up on August 20th and 21st. “Coastal Classics – Working through the Decades,” is this year’s theme and will highlight wooden commercial fishing boats, an integral part of life on the central Oregon Coast. The 2011 poster depicts a classic boat, “The Gal,” known by many in this area and has operated along the Pacific coast for over 70 years.

This year’s poster was created by Newport-based graphic artist Travis Leonard. Each year, he explores the theme of the Port of Toledo Wooden Boat Show and brings his direct experience with the subject into the final product. His visit with Kevin Bastien on “The Gal” was his first experience on a commercial fishing boat. Leonard spent some time on “The Gal” with owner Kevin Bastien and listened to stories about his years of commercial fishing. Bastien described being out on the sea in all kinds of conditions. “When you are out there fishing, you have no choice,” states Bastien, “The weather does what it wants to do.”Learning about the complexity of the process and the risks taken out on the ocean inspired Leonard to create an image that communicates some of the challenge of commercial fishing. This year’s poster depicts “The Gal” on a stormy sea.

Built in 1939 at the Tacoma Boat Yard in Washington, “The Gal” is a 40’ foot double-ender. Bastien worked as a deckhand on the boat, leased it for 3 years, and then purchased the boat in 1991. He fishes, by himself, off Oregon and California for salmon, halibut, and albacore. “The Gal” will be docked and on display at this year’s Wooden Boat Show.

The seventh annual Wooden Boat Show, will bring together a collection of new and vintage wooden boats from all over the Northwest. Family boat building begins on Friday, August 19th and the finished boats are launched in Depot Slough on Sunday afternoon. Toy boat building is located next to family boat building, and the kids are supplied with all the materials necessary to build the boat of their imagination. Other family events include: the Yaquina Run-Off- a non motorized boat race, a Saturday Poker Paddle, live music, exhibits, sailing, great food, and much more.

Posters can be purchased at the Port Office, 385 NW 1st, Toledo, or at the show for $5 each.

Family Boat Building

At the 7th Annual Wooden Boat Show
Have you always wanted to build your own boat but didn't have the time or didn’t know where to start? Well here's your chance. Gather together your family - your kids, parents and grandkids or invite a few friends, and spend three days at the 7th Annual Port of Toledo Wooden Boat Festival building your own small boat. According to families in the past, "you don't just build a boat, you build a family!" Register now for this August 19th-21st project at the Toledo Wooden Boat Show.

Under the guidance of Port Townsend master boat builder,Carl Chamberlin and Toledo boat builder Rick Johnson, you and your team will build the 'Nuf, a featherweight dory designed by Chamberlin. It's 9-1/2 feet long (canoe stern) with a 30-inch beam--and weighs in at only 30 pounds--great for kids if they can get it away from their folks!

The cost for this boat is $450.00, which includes all materials and instruction for one boat. This is a great deal for a great boat. A group of three to five people per boat is recommended, with at least one adult per group. All skill levels are welcome. All ages, beginning at 8 years old and up, can work together on this project. The boat building begins on Friday, August 19th at 9 AM. Two full days and one half day on Sunday will culminate in an afternoon launch ceremony before you take your boat home. The Port of Toledo offers scholarships for Family Boat Building. Call the Port Office for further information at(541)336-5207.

The 7th Annual Port of Toledo Wooden Boat Show will highlight “Coastal Classics,” the working commercial boats that have been a part of Lincoln County for decades. The Wooden Boat Show is a family friendly event with wooden boats from the Northwest, boat races, a poker paddle, live music, food vendors and lots of activities for kids.

Waterfront Park Groundbreaking

The Port of Toledo will be breaking ground on Waterfront Park, our new park facility at the end of main street, and adjacent to the Port’s Marina. The ground breaking will be at 10:00 am on June 9, 2011.

Construction of the park is funded through the Local Government Grant Program through Oregon Parks and Recreation Department with the Port pledging the property for park use. The new Park will include restrooms, a pavilion with covered picnic area and a stage, and a sloped grassy seating area, as well as paved pathway along the Waterfront.

Waterfront Park is one of the projects that will be transforming Toledo’s Waterfront this year, combined with the Port’s new transient dock, and the City’s improvements to the street crossing at the end of Main Street.

For more information contact the Port Office at info@portoftoledo.org.

A Big Weekend in Toledo!!

Mother's Day Weekend will be a very busy one in Toledo.

The Second Annual Quilt Quest will feature over 300 handmade quilts on display all over Toledo. It's also National Train Day, and the folks at the Yaquina Pacific Railroad Historical Society will have big doings over at their museum which is adjacent to the Port's grassy field. The Port's field will be the home of Toledo's first Renaissance fair! Here is a news release from local organizer Anthony Bucas:

Ye Merrie Greenwood Players brings the world of Elizabethan England to Toledo this Mother's Day weekend. Celebrating the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the players and friends create an English village market faire. A variety of interactive entertainers and faire merchants present the visitor with wares with all to make them all faire people. The Port of Toledo hosts the Faire as it encamps upon the Port's field near the intersection of 1st & "A" Streets. Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for seniors and children 12 & under, and children 5 & under receive free passage. Ye Merrie Greenwood at Glastonbury Faire is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday May 7th and Sunday May 8th.

Entertainment from the Ye Merrie Greenwood Players will range from Renaissance dance and song to English madrigals and Gypsy dancers. They are accompanied by the Bridgetown Morris Men dancers, musician Annie Henry, the Firey Fool Brook Riddick, the Sherwood Madrigal Singers, harpist Janet Naylor, Junction City Brass, the Reverend Chumleigh, the Mongers Guild, James Funke-Lobigniac and his hurdy-gurdy, the Pacific Northwest Privateers, the gracious Sir Gustov, and the knights of the Empire of Chivalry and Steel. Faire merchants will share their merriment and pleasantries as they entreat the visitor to part with their coin.

Ye Merrie Greenwood Players are a non-profit theatre company from the Tri-Cities of Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland, Washington. Volunteers and players who have, since 1985, successfully produced and peopled their Ye Merrie Greenwood Renaissance Faire in Richland, Washington. The come to visit the beauty of the Oregon Coast and to share with the coastal communities their passion for faire play. The play is the thing and all is faire.

Here is a link to their event page which includes performance schedules, location maps, and vendor applications. We are very much looking forward to all of these events and we hope you'll attend them as well. See you then!!

Depoe Bay's Wooden Boat Show

The always enjoyable Depoe Bay Wooden Boat Show was held this past weekend. It was chilly but not raining (for a change!) and a good time was had by all. Here, tireless volunteer Karel Murphy chats with visitors.
In our tented booth, Michael Bogoger and Rick Johnson continued work on the nutshell pram they started at last year's show. They brought along a portable steamer to mold the oak frames for installation. Michael has posted details and a short video of the process on his blog.

The steam did help keep us warm in the chilly air, and watching the process really was interesting.

Another very entertaining feature at the boat show is the kids' boat building tent. I captured a few images of young boat-builders with their unique craft.

Karel's husband Tom, and his friend Richard Appicello gave the crowd a couple of kayak safety demonstrations. Very impressive, especially in that cold, cold water!

We always look forward to and enjoy Depoe Bay's show.

Return of the Osprey

High on a pole just across Depot Slough from Toledo's Public Viewing Platform is an Osprey nest. The pair who inhabit the nest have just returned for the season to hatch and rear this years' offspring. You can watch these beautiful majestic birds as they repair and refurbish their nest, fly over the slough in search of fish, and tend to their young.While you enjoy the platform and its picnic table, you can watch many other water birds, including Great Blue Heron - and see the fish jump, the river otters play and even an occasional Harbor Seal that makes its way into Depot Slough in search of dinner. You can also watch the operations across the slough at the Georgia Pacific mill as they unload and stack logs used in the process of making paper. Public use of the platform is always free, and the project was funded by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration and The Oregon Department of Land Conservation & Development. It was built in 2004.

Sailboat Auction!

The 31' Cheoy Lee Offshore Cutter 'Osprey' will be auctioned off next month with the proceeds going directly to the Youth Boating Club.

The live auction will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 8th, 2011 at the Toledo Boatyard. The boatyard is located at 1000 SW Altree Lane. Starting bid is $6,000.00.

The 'Osprey' was built in 1968 by Cheoy Lee Shipyards. It includes sails, a Yanmar diesel inboard motor and rigging. It is available to view at the boat yard during regular business hours, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Questions may be directed to Port Manager Bud Shoemake at 541-336-5207.

In the boatyard business!

The Port of Toledo is pleased to announce that the purchase of the former Fred Wahl boatyard at Sturgeon Bend in Toledo was finalized on Wednesday, December 29, 2010. Funding for the purchase comes from the Oregon Business Development Department’s Infrastructure Finance Authority in the form of a $1.2 million loan from the Port Revolving Loan Fund, and a $350,000 grant from state lottery funds.

The property acquisition had been delayed due to the discovery of sediment contamination from past shipyard operations. The Port has been working with Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to come to an agreement for the cleanup of the property. The Port has entered into a consent judgment with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality which provides the Port with certain liability protections in exchange for the public benefit of the Port’s purchase of the property and its commitment to complete DEQ’s approved cleanup. The Port has secured state lottery funds for the cleanup through a Brownfields Redevelopment Fund grant administered through Oregon Business Development Department.

The boatyard site was used by the timber industry from the 1950s to the 1980s, and shipyard operations began in 1996 with Sturgeon Bend Boat Works. Fred Wahl acquired the property in 1999 and ran operations there until he closed in December 2008. It has been out of operation since.

The buildings, equipment, dry-dock and travel-lift will be checked over, cleaned up and repaired as needed during January with the yard reopening February 1, 2011. The travel-lift can pull boats as large as 90 tons, and the dry-dock can pull vessels as large as 300 tons.The Port’s business plan calls for an ‘open’ boatyard with the port being responsible for scheduling, hauling out the vessels, hull cleaning, blocking, and environmental compliance. Vessel owners will have the opportunity to perform their own maintenance, following boatyard policies, and can hire individual contractors as desired. Methods used in the operation of the yard will be as ‘green’ as possible, and DEQ’s applicable best management practices will be followed to assure that no further contamination occurs on the site.

The Port will also be pursing grants to make infrastructure improvements such as storm drainage, parking, and extending city sewer service to the property.Many boat owners have expressed their frustration in not having local facilities available to pull their large vessels. Owners and operators of these vessels now have the option to have repairs and improvements done locally, rather than taking their vessels - and their money - out of the area, which means jobs and economic value to Lincoln County.

The Port wishes to thank our partners throughout the process, which have included Oregon Business Development Department, Lynn Schoessler, executive director for the Infrastructure Finance Authority; Dave Harlan, Ports Division Manager; Karen Homolac, Brownfields Program Specialist; and the Governor’s Economic Revitalization Team. Bud Shoemake says, “It’s been a long time coming, and now we are ramping up our efforts to get the yard open for business.”